Tablets

Unveiled to the world at CES, the Acer Iconia B1 is Acer's play at hitting the budget tablet space. While not offering bleeding edge specs, the B1 does offer a stock Jelly Bean experience on a 7 inch tablet, which, in the UK, goes for just £99. At CES we were told to expect launch in stores at the end of January, and true to their word that seems to be the case.
The Iconia B1 has been spotted...

Supply chain rumormonger tips 1080p display, thinner bezel, same price point
The ASUS-made Nexus 7 has been a runaway success -- arguably the most successful Android tablet yet, and certainly the most popular Nexus device to date. So it shouldn't come as much of a surprise to hear that a successor might be in the works, and due for launch later this year.
That's exactly what's being reported...

Samsung has announced that the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 is available in garnet red this week at participating retailers. It runs $219.99 and comes with a free matching garnet red case. Samsung's 7-incher is running Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, sports a dual-core processor and has an IR port tucked away in there, too. The limited edition red version is available from Walmart, Amazon.com, Office Depot, Fry's,...

We've learned much about the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 over the past week, and now we're seeing further indications of what plans Samsung might have for its Galaxy Tab line. Samsung fansite SamMobile, which broke some of the Note 8.0 news a few days ago, now says that Samsung plans to launch new Galaxy Tabs this year, but only 10.1-inch versions are on the cards at the moment. The "Tab 3 7.0," it...

The Nexus 7 is substantially more portable than larger tablets, and that means you may be more inclined to use a case. I've found the Nillkin leather flip cover for mine, and it's quite an impressive little case for the money. When I got my Nexus 7 I planned on carrying it with me more often, tossing it in the bag whenever I left the house. It's light and portable with great one-handed use, but...

Just a day after we got our first look at the Galaxy Note 8.0 in leaked spy shots, a couple more photos of the 8-inch tablet have emerged online. Today's pics come via French Android community Frandroid, showing apparently the Note 8.0 alongside its 5.5-inch sibling, the Galaxy Note 2. As with yesterday's images, we see a tablet with a curved design and a phone-style three-button setup on the...

The latest update to Skype improved the UI and added a much asked for feature in portrait calling, but unfortunately the rest of the app is locked in landscape. The portrait calling seemed like a no-brainer fix, especially considering many smaller tablets -- like the Nexus 7 -- have camera setups meant for portrait orientation. The unfortunate bug (or at least we hope it's a bug) is that for now...

Update: Fresh images have now emerged showing the Note 8.0, its software and the S Pen in greater detail.
We've learned much about the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 over the past week or so, from specs to a purported release date. Now we have what might be our first proper glimpse of the tablet itself out in the wild -- and it's packing a few surprises. In spy shots obtained by Italian outlet DDAY.it...

Galaxy Young, Galaxy XCover 2, Galaxy Pocket Plus also on the way according to leaked docs
The past week has seen the Galaxy Note 8.0 go from mere rumor to being more-or-less officially confirmed by Samsung. Now, thanks to a leaked Samsung roadmap obtained by TechnoBuffalo, we have our first clear indication of when the Note 10.1's little brother might become available to purchase. A slide on...

Last year in Barcelona, Samsung managed to out the Galaxy Note 10.1 on the side of a building at Plaça de Catalunya, a day ahead of the official announcement. Looks like we'll have no such slippage for Galaxy Note 8, as Samsung's JK Shin apparently has confirmed a previous report to INews24 that we'll see yet another size variation at Mobile World Congress next month.
What we don't yet know is...

Last week brought news of a possible 8-inch Galaxy Note tablet coming at Mobile World Congress; today we have more details of more future Samsung tablets from the same source. Samsung fansite SamMobile reports via “Korean insiders” that the company will soon launch a new line of Galaxy Tabs, including a possible 7 and 10.1-inch Galaxy Tab 3 (codenamed “Santos”), and a new mystery tablet known...

Sony Mobile has announced the Android 4.1-powered Xperia Tablet Z, right as we expected them to do so. The specs also match last week's rumors, with a few extra surprises thrown in. The Tablet Z comes equipped with a 10.1-inch WUXGA (1920 x 1200) display complete with the Mobile Bravia Engine 2, 2 GB of RAM, 32 GB of on device storage, a microSD card slot, NFC, and an 8.1 MP Exmor R camera....

The Jelly Bean update for the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 and Galaxy Tab 2 actually started pushing a few days ago, but today Samsung's giving us the full details on the updates. They're lengthy, and chances are you've discovered many of the changes already.
Hit the break for the full list.

We've come across the Samsung GT-N5100 and GT-N5110 a couple of times before in benchmarks and certification listings. We've even speculated that based on the model number and specs, they're likely candidates for Wifi and 3G versions of a new, smaller Galaxy Note tablet. Now Samsung fan site SamMobile claims to have uncovered details of the GT-N5100/10, which it says will come to market as the "...

Last week in Las Vegas we saw the first of Sony's 2013 smartphone line-up, and now it may be time for a refreshed Sony tablet to join the fray. A device by the name of "Xperia Tablet Z" briefly appeared on a product listing page for Japanese carrier NTT Docomo, indicating that the tablet would appear alongside the Xperia Z at a "Docomo smartphone lounge" event in Fukuoka, Japan next Tuesday, Jan...

T-Mobile just hit us up with some new info regarding the Nexus 4 and Nexus 7. Here 'tis:
Nexus 4: Availability has been expanded to additional retail stores (so call yours to check), and it will be in all stores 'in the coming weeks." It'll be available again at T-Mobile's website starting Jan. 23.
Nexus 7: You can now get a 32GB version with a T-Mobile HSPA+ SIM card starting, well, now...

Sprint Epic 4G Touch, T-Mobile Galaxy Note 2 getting fixes so far
When word dropped in December about an exploit to the kernel used with some Samsung Exynos chipsets, Sasmung promised an update "as quickly as possible" to plug the hole. Looks like fixes are starting to push out. Here's what we're seeing so far:
Sprint Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch: Sprint has officially announced software...

Good news for those of you with the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1. Not only do you have a pretty good tablet with pretty great stylus (excuse us -- "S Pen) interaction, today you're getting an update to Android 4.1.2. Jelly Bean. New features should be in line with what we described in November -- the new "multiwindow" viewing and "air view" controls for the S Pen, "easy clip" for cutting out images...

Last night we reported that the official ASUS-made Nexus 7 docking station had started appearing at the manufacturer's own UK-based online store -- well, for some users, at least. This morning there's good news and bad news.
Firstly, it seems the product page is now working for more people -- we're having no problem accessing it here in the UK. However, the accessory now shows as "sold out," as...